When it comes to SEO (Search Engine Optimization), keywords have had a major influence on how financial advisor websites rank when it comes to online searches in Google and the other major search engines. Over the years as the internet and the technologies that support it have evolved, so have the ways to build online visibility and website traffic.
While the ways keywords are used and searched may have changed, the importance of using the right keywords for your financial advisor website and online listings have not.
Read on for how to find the top SEO keywords for your financial advisor website.
Keywords Still Matter
The talk of keywords being “dead” is simply not true. Yes, Google has changed how keywords are analyzed with regard to online search queries, and yes this is because of the ways search queries are happening are changing. But instead of trying to debate if keywords are dead, think about it like this: Do you do anything online the way you did it 10 years or even five years ago? We are in a state of constant evolution.
The answer is more than likely an emphatic no. The internet is more prevalent than ever. It’s importance is going up and not down.
Online access requires little more than a watch, phone, tablet, or computer. People can type a search request, they can speak it directly into the search bar, or even use a digital service such as Siri, Alexa, or Google Assistant.
Because of the new ways people are seeking information online, other forms of SEO are becoming necessary parts of an effective SEO strategy.
This may include Semantic Search, where Google is using AI to factor in the user’s intent when returning results. Pretty cool stuff. However, it cannot be overstated that keywords still matter. But they are ever-evolving, so don’t get complacent.
How to Choose the Right Keywords
Now that we’ve squashed the myth that keywords are dead, let’s go over some ways to find the best keywords for financial advisors. It should come as no surprise that one of the best tools for discovering relevant keywords is from Google. Google’s Keyword Planner tool is a free resource that can help you quickly determine a list of keywords for your financial advisor marketing and SEO.
As an example, a quick search on the Google Keyword Planner tool shows the following are the top keywords for Financial Advisor:
Financial Advisor
Financial Planner
Financial Consultant
Certified Financial Planner
Financial Advisor Near Me
Financial Consultant Near Me
Independent Financial Advisor
Best Financial Advisors
Fiduciary Financial Advisor
Financial Planner Near Me
Registered Investment Advisor
Wealth Advisor
Personal Financial Advisor
Fee-Only Financial Planner
Financial Advisory Services
Wealth Management Consultant
Financial Advisor Cost
Wealth Management Advisor
Wells Fargo Financial Advisors
Money Advisor
Fidelity Financial Advisor
Certified Financial Advisor
Fiduciary Financial Advisor Near Me
Wealth Planner
Chartered Financial Planner
Wealth Advisor Near Me
Best Financial Advisors Near Me
Fiduciary Near Me
Top Financial Advisors
Certified Financial Planner Near Me
Find A Financial Advisor
Fee-Based Financial Advisor
Becoming A Financial Advisor
Investment Advisors
Top Wealth Management Firms 2020
Independent Financial Advisor Near Me
Fiduciary Advisors
Best Financial Advisor Firms
Fee-Only Financial Planner Near Me
Financial Advisor Companies
Fee-Only Financial Advisor
Fee-Based Financial Services
Ria Finance
Investment Planner
Investment Advisor Near Me
Financial Planning Companies
Retirement Advisor
Personal Financial Planner
Licensed Financial Advisor
Best Financial Advice
While some of these keywords may surprise you, it’s likely you expected to see these keywords on this list. However, you may have noticed, the above keywords were done at a very high level. Google’s Keyword Planner tool allows users to search for hundreds of keyword options and combinations that can be used to research all of your options. There are billions of keyword options at Google.
For example, the general search criteria in the above list does not take one very important criterion into consideration - the location of the investor. It is very easy to make these searches geo-specific by adding city and state. For many financial advisors, especially those with smaller firms and practices, local investors make up the majority of their clientele, assets, and revenues. For this reason, it’s critical to think locally when developing keywords for your financial advisor website.
Another best practice when researching keywords is to do some research on your main competitors. By entering keywords your competitors may use, you might get some additional ideas for how to incorporate those into your SEO strategy.
How to Use Keywords That Matter
Unfortunately, finding the right financial advisor keywords isn’t the only part of optimizing SEO. Now it’s time to incorporate those keywords throughout your online presence to get the most out of them.
The Right Content
If you have to choose one single place to start, it’s content. The internet has become a crowded place, and new information is being created every minute of every day . However, that does not mean all content is created equal. Far from it. Most advisors produce the wrong types of content and the keywords. They use keywords in articles that interest them. They do not use keywords that their ideal clients use when they search for service providers and financial information on the Internet.
That means your potential clients and Google alike are much more likely to find your financial advisor content online if it’s high-quality, relevant, compelling, and accurate. From blog posts to web page copy to social media posts and online directory listings, right types of content are king.
Keep in mind that as discussed above, keywords have evolved and so has the way Google reads them. What does this mean for financial advisors? It means that key phrases, long-and short-tail keywords, and relevant content combined are going to achieve better results than just sticking keywords within body copy along with meta tags and descriptions. That may have worked in the past, but Google has gotten smarter and now it takes more effort to make it to the top of the search engine results pages (SERPs).
Structure Your Website with SEO in Mind
Echoing all of the information above, it should be no surprise that Google is now looking even closer at how websites are created when assigning value to SEO efforts.
In short, Google wants it to be as easy as possible to “read” or “crawl” a site and quickly determine everything it needs to know to determine if it meets as many criteria as possible for a given Google search. Some common elements of successful SEO-focused pages include the use of internal links, backlinks, and Schema markup.
Internal links are links that when clicked, go somewhere else on your website. Backlinks are valid links to your site from another website. Schema markup is a series of HTML tags that help Google identify the types of content on the pages of your financial advisor website.
SEO is a Marathon, Not a Sprint
Those looking for a quick SEO solution using the right keywords will be disappointed to learn that it takes time to see rankings improve over time as you work your way up to page one for all the right keywords. The good news? Working with the right digital marketing agency that specializes in SEO can help speed things along. Not because there is a magic bullet for enhancing financial advisor SEO quickly, but because an experienced team can lay the SEO groundwork much faster than financial advisors trying to achieve the same goals on their own.
